Jan Sundquist

Cardiovascular disease risk factors among older black, Mexican-American, and white women and men: an analysis of NHANES III, 1988-1994. Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

CONTEXT: There are few studies of ethnic differences in cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors in older populations.

Familial associations of rheumatoid arthritis with autoimmune diseases and related conditions

OBJECTIVE In the era of genome-wide association studies, familial risks are used to estimate disease heritability and the likelihood of candidate-gene identification. This study was undertaken to estimate associations of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) with any of 33 autoimmune diseases and related conditions among parents and offspring, singleton siblings, twins, and spouses. METHODS The Multigeneration Register in Sweden was used as a reliable source of information on Swedish families throughout the last century. Data on autoimmune diseases in individual family members were obtained through linkage to the Hospital Discharge Register. The standardized incidence ratio (SIR) was calculated as a measure of the relative risk of RA in family members of patients with RA or any of 33 other autoimmune diseases or related conditions, as compared with the relative risk of RA in those lacking an affected family member. RESULTS Among a total of 447,704 patients, 47,361 were diagnosed as having RA. The SIRs for RA were 3.02 in offspring of affected parents, 4.64 in siblings, 9.31 in multiplex families, 6.48 in twins, and 1.17 in spouses. Significant associations with the familial risk of RA in offspring according to parental proband were observed for ankylosing spondylitis (SIR 2.96), localized scleroderma (SIR 2.40), Sjögrens syndrome (SIR 2.25), systemic lupus erythematosus (SIR 2.13), systemic sclerosis (SIR 1.65), Hashimoto thyroiditis/hypothyroidism (SIR 1.54), pernicious anemia (SIR 1.53), sarcoidosis (SIR 1.40), psoriasis (SIR 1.36), Wegeners granulomatosis (SIR 1.34), and asthma or polymyalgia rheumatica (SIR 1.32). CONCLUSION This is the first study to compare the familial risks of RA in relation to a large number of autoimmune diseases and related conditions using data from a single population. The high discordant familial risks in this population suggest that there is extensive genetic sharing between RA and the associated diseases.

Morbidity in cardiovascular diseases in immigrants in Sweden.

Abstract. Gadd M, Johansson S‐E, Sundquist J, Wändell P (Family Medicine Stockholm, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge, Sweden). Morbidity in cardiovascular diseases in immigrants in Sweden. J Intern Med 2003; 254: 236–243.

Country of birth, instrumental activities of daily living, self-rated health and mortality: a Swedish population-based survey of people aged 55-74.

There is scant knowledge of the effects of country of birth on the health of individuals in the years prior to and after retirement. The aim of this study was to consider country of birth in relation to health status, instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) and all-cause mortality when adjusted for socioeconomic status (SES). Cross-sectional data were collected between 1986 and 1991 on 8959 individuals between the ages of 55 and 74. Self-reported data were analysed using a logistic regression model while the mortality data were analysed by means of a proportional hazard model. In the present study, immigrants from Southern Europe, Eastern Europe and Finland carried significantly increased risks of poor health even after adjustment for SES. Southern Europeans, refugees from Developing countries and Finns exhibited an increased risk of impaired IADL compared to Swedes, even after adjustment for SES. In conclusion, country of birth was associated with poor health status and impaired IADL. This association remained after adjustment for SES. In accordance with pre-study expectations, mortality was predicted by impaired IADL and male gender. Country of birth was not associated with all-cause mortality.

Are there differences in all-cause and coronary heart disease mortality between immigrants in Sweden and in their country of birth? A follow-up study of total populations

BackgroundMortality from cardiovascular diseases is higher among immigrants than native Swedes. It is not clear whether the high mortality persists from the country of birth or is a result of migration. The purpose of the present study was to analyse whether all-cause and coronary heart disease mortality differ between immigrants in Sweden and in the country of birth.MethodsTwo cohorts including the total population from Swedish national registers and WHO were defined. All-cause and CHD mortality are presented as age-adjusted incidence rates and incidence density ratios (IDR) in eight immigrant groups in Sweden and in their country of birth. The data were analysed using Poisson regression.ResultsThe all-cause mortality risk was lower among seven of eight male immigrant groups (IDR 0.39–0.97) and among six of eight female immigrant groups (IDR 0.42–0.81) than in their country of birth. The CHD mortality risk was significantly lower in male immigrants from Norway (IDR = 0.84), Finland (IDR = 0.91), Germany (IDR = 0.84) and Hungary (IDR = 0.59) and among female immigrants from Germany (IDR = 0.66) and Hungary (IDR = 0.54) than in their country of birth. In contrast, there was a significantly higher CHD mortality risk in male immigrants from Southern Europe (IDR = 1.23) than in their country of birth.ConclusionThe all-cause mortality risk was lower in the majority of immigrant groups in Sweden than in their country of birth. The differences in CHD mortality risks were more complex. For countries with high CHD mortality, such as Finland and Hungary, the risk was lower among immigrants in Sweden than in their country of birth. For low-risk countries in South Europe, the risk was higher in immigrants in Sweden than in South Europe.

Cancer risks in Crohn disease patients

BACKGROUND Patients diagnosed with Crohn disease (CD) are known to be at an increased risk of bowel cancers and lymphoma. CD is an autoimmune disease and we hypothesize that the patients are predisposed to a wider spectrum of cancers. PATIENTS AND METHODS A CD research database was constructed by identifying hospitalized CD patients from the Hospital Discharge Register and cancer patients from the Swedish Cancer Registry. Follow-up of 21 788 CD patients first hospitalized during the years 1964-2004 identified 1424 cancer cases. Standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) were calculated by comparing cancers in CD patients with subjects without CD. RESULTS In addition to the known sites, many additional sites were in excess in CD patients. These included liver, pancreatic, lung, prostate, testicular, kidney and skin (squamous cell) cancers; nonthyroid endocrine tumors and leukemia. The previously established sites showed the highest SIRs; however, SIRs >2.0 were noted for the novel sites of the liver, testis and kidney. For testicular cancer, the SIR of seminoma was 2.74. Cancer risks were influences by age at first hospitalization for CD but whether the age effects were increasing or decreasing depending on the cancer type. CONCLUSIONS This large study identified many novel subsequent cancers in CD patients.

Cancer risk in hospitalized rheumatoid arthritis patients

OBJECTIVES Patients diagnosed with RA have been at an increased risk of many cancers and at a decreased risk of some cancers. We planned to revisit the theme by using a nation-wide population of RA patients. METHODS An RA research database was constructed by identifying hospitalized RA patients from the Hospital Discharge Register and cancer patients from the Cancer Registry. Earlier studies from Sweden have shown that some 75% of RA patients have been hospitalized at some time point. Follow-up of 42,262 RA patients was carried out from year 1980 to 2004 including separate follow-ups for shorter intervals. Standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) were calculated for cancer in RA patients by comparing with subjects without RA. RESULTS Many cancers were in excess in RA patients, especially Hodgkin disease, non-Hodgkin lymphoma and squamous cell skin cancer; a novel association was found for non-thyroid endocrine tumours. Colon, rectal and endometrial cancers were decreased in RA patients. When RA patients were first hospitalized after 1999, the SIRs for melanoma, squamous cell skin and upper aerodigestive tract cancers and for leukaemia were increased compared with previous periods. CONCLUSIONS This study, the largest so far published, quantified the increased and decreased site-specific risks of cancer in RA patients. The recent increases in the risks of squamous cell skin and upper aerodigestive tract cancers, melanoma and leukaemia call for continuous vigilance and recording of changes in treatment.

Physical activity, exercise and self-rated health: a population-based study from Sweden

BackgroundIn order to screen for the most inactive individuals in the population and target health-related interventions where they are most needed it is important to assess different forms of physical activity in population-based studies. The aims were (1) to identify the most inactive individuals in the population by assessing two dimensions of physical activity, (2) to investigate the correlation between exercise and total physical activity and (3) to investigate the association between exercise, total physical activity and good self-rated health.MethodsA simple random sample of the Swedish population aged 25–64 years were interviewed about their living conditions, health and lifestyle in a survey performed by Statitics Sweden. In total 1876 women and 1880 men completed the survey during 1999 (response rate 76.6%) when two different questions about physical activity assessed exercise and total physical activity in all domains (e.g. transportation, exercise, and at work). Logistic regression models were used to estimate odds ratios.ResultsThe most inactive individuals (no exercise and total physical activity ≤ 2 hours per week) constituted 4.3% of the sample. The correlation between exercise and total physical activity was low (gamma = 0.4, p = 0.02). There were significant associations between higher levels of exercise, total physical activity and good self-rated health after adjustment for age, gender, country of birth, education, employment, marital status, housing tenure, smoking and BMI.ConclusionBoth exercise and total physical activity were independently associated with good self-rated health. It seems to be advantageous to use more than one question in population based surveys in order to evaluate several dimensions of physical activity and identify the most inactive individuals.

The influence of age at migration and length of residence on self-rated health among Swedish immigrants: a cross-sectional study

Objective. Increasing global migration has led to profound demographic changes in most industrialised countries. A growing body of research has investigated various health aspects among immigrant groups and found that some immigrant groups have poorer health than the majority population. It has been suggested that poor acculturation in the host country could lie behind the increased risk of worsened health among certain immigrant groups. The aim was to investigate the cross-sectional association between acculturation, measured as age at migration or length of residence, and self-rated health among young immigrants. Design. The simple, random samples of 7137 women and 7415 men aged 16–34 years were based on pooled, independent data collected during the period 1992–1999 obtained from the Swedish Annual Level of Living Survey (SALLS). Logistic regression was applied in the estimation of odds ratios (OR) for poor self-rated health, after accounting for age, sex, socioeconomic status (SES) and social networks. The non-response rate varied between 23.6 and 28.3% in the different immigrant groups. Results. The odds of poor self-rated health increased with increasing age at migration to Sweden among first-generation immigrants. For those who had resided in Sweden less than 15 years the odds of poor self-rated health were significantly increased. In addition, most of the immigrant groups had higher odds of poor self-rated health than the reference group. Conclusions. Health care workers and policy makers need to be aware that immigrants who arrive in the host country at higher ages and/or have lived in the host country for a shorter period of time might need special attention as they are more likely to suffer from poor self-rated health, a valid health status indicator that can be used in population health monitoring.

Smokeless tobacco and coronary heart disease: a 12-year follow-up study.

Background Cigarette smoking has declined whereas the use of smokeless tobacco is increasing. There is an ongoing debate as to whether smokeless tobacco is a recommendable strategy to help smokers to quit. However, very few studies have examined the association between smokeless tobacco, namely snuff, and coronary heart disease, which implies that it has not been possible to provide scientific results for public health policies and clinical guidelines concerning the use of smokeless tobacco. Design A follow-up study. Methods A random sample of 3120 healthy men aged 30–74 years was interviewed in 1988 and 1989 and followed up to the year 2000 with regard to coronary heart disease. Cox regression was used to estimate the relative risk of coronary heart disease in six categories of smoking and snuffing habits, after adjustment for established risk factors for coronary heart disease. Results Smokers, former smokers, and those who combined smoking and snuffing had significantly higher hazard ratios than never-smokers. The very highest hazard ratio was found among individuals combining smoking and snuffing. Daily snuffers had a hazard ratio of 1.62 (95% confidence interval 0.70–3.03) after adjustment for age. Conclusions Even though the association between daily snuffing and coronary heart disease was non-significant, the hazard ratio was markedly increased. Therefore, smokers should not use smokeless tobacco in order to quit smoking, especially as safer alternatives are available. Further studies in different settings are required to provide scientific results for public health policies and clinical guidelines.